Route based manufacturing system analysis, apparatuses, systems, and methods

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods are described to improve efficiency in the manufacturing of a product for a manufacturer. The system includes a manufacturing route. The manufacturing route specifies at least two dimensions, where a first dimension of the at least two dimensions is a client machine and a second dimension of the at least two dimensions is a process associated with the client machine. A data stream is responsive to the plurality of dimensions. A database is configured to receive the data stream. A processor is configured to provide data from the data stream that indicates a symptom of a problem which can occur within the manufacturing route.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This patent application is a Divisional of U.S. Non-Provisional patentapplication Ser. No. 15/216,533 filed on Jul. 21, 2016, which claimspriority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/282,058entitled “CLOUD BASED DATA TRANSMISSION AND RETRIEVAL,” filed on Jul.24, 2015. U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/282,058 entitled“CLOUD BASED DATA TRANSMISSION AND RETRIEVAL,” is hereby fullyincorporated by reference. U.S. Non-Provisional patent application Ser.No. 15/216,533 entitled “CLOUD BASED DATA TRANSMISSION AND RETRIEVAL,”is hereby fully incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of Invention

The invention relates generally to improving manufacturing systems andmore specifically to increasing the value of a manufacturing system andthe products produced by the manufacturing system.

2. Art Background

Modern manufacturing in the information age can generate informationrelated to the steps of a manufacturing system. Thus, information iscompartmentalized by the steps of the manufacturing system. At somepoint in time a product can fail during its service life followingmanufacture. This can present a problem which requires a technicalsolution. In other situations product waste occurs in a manufacturingsystem which lowers yield. This can present a problem which requires atechnical solution.

The global economy has contributed to the compartmentalization of thesteps of a manufacturing system by virtue of the fact that amanufacturing system can be spread out across the geography of theglobe. Information generated in such a distributed system iscompartmentalized since the information is generated by each step duringmanufacture. At some point a product can fail during its service lifefollowing manufacture. This can present a problem which requires atechnical solution. In other situations product waste occurs in amanufacturing system which lowers yield. This can present a problemwhich requires a technical solution.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention may best be understood by referring to the followingdescription and accompanying drawings that are used to illustrateembodiments of the invention. The invention is illustrated by way ofexample in the embodiments and is not limited in the figures of theaccompanying drawings, in which like references indicate similarelements.

FIG. 1 illustrates configuring manufacturing routes into an integratedmanufacturing data collection system, according to embodiments of theinvention.

FIG. 2 illustrates the breadth of the manufacturing data collectionsystem, according to embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates a multidimensional manufacturing route, according toembodiments of the invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates a multidimensional manufacturing route structure,according to embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates using multidimensional manufacturing route data toimprove value during manufacturing, according to embodiments of theinvention.

FIG. 6 illustrates using multidimensional manufacturing route data toimprove efficiency during manufacturing, according to embodiments of theinvention.

FIG. 7 illustrates capturing data across many processes within themanufacturing system, according to embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 8 illustrates data collection during product lifecycle enhancingthe value of the product, according to embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 9A-9B illustrates an example of data reporting, according toembodiments of the invention.

FIG. 10 illustrates an example of data reporting associated with thedata shown in FIG. 9A-9B, according to embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 11 illustrates an example of variables aggregation, according toembodiments of the invention.

FIGS. 12A-12A1 illustrate creating manufacturing data routes, accordingto embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 12B illustrates a structure of manufacturing data routes, accordingto embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 13 illustrates a multidimensional manufacturing route, according toembodiments of the invention.

FIG. 14 illustrates an organization of the data hierarchy in amanufacturing system employing a structure of multidimensionalmanufacturing routes, according to embodiments of the invention.

FIG. 15 illustrates methods of data collection and a data schema for amultidimensional manufacturing route structure, according to embodimentsof the invention.

FIG. 16 illustrates a manufacturing data processing system in whichembodiments of the invention may be used.

FIG. 17 illustrates another representation of the manufacturing dataprocessing system in which embodiments of the invention may be used.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following detailed description of embodiments of the invention,reference is made to the accompanying drawings in which like referencesindicate similar elements, and in which is shown by way of illustration,specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. Theseembodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those of skillin the art to practice the invention. In other instances, well-knowncircuits, structures, and techniques have not been shown in detail inorder not to obscure the understanding of this description. Thefollowing detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in alimiting sense, and the scope of the invention is defined only by theappended claims.

Systems and methods are described for increasing value of a productproduced by a manufacturing system. In some embodiments, the usefullifetime of a product is increased because problems that limit productlifetime are uncovered during the manufacture of the product and arecorrected within the manufacturing system. In other embodiments, thetime to market is decreased because problems that exist in thedevelopment phase of a product can be uncovered and eliminated.Embodiments of the invention are applicable to various types productmanufacture including drug development.

FIG. 1 illustrates configuring manufacturing routes into an integratedmanufacturing data collection system, according to embodiments of theinvention. With reference to FIG. 1, a database 102 containsmultidimensional data which is collected during the manufacture of aproduct, referred to herein as multidimensional manufacturing routedata. At 104, a user configures the multidimensional manufacturingroutes for the data collection. Configuration of the manufacturingroutes at 104 can be done in a variety of ways for a variety ofindustries to which the embodiments of the invention are applied. Aschema is used to organize the data collection from the variousmultidimensional manufacturing routes that are associated with a routestructure for the manufacture of a given product. As used in thisdescription of embodiments, a “route structure” is a plurality ofmultidimensional manufacturing routes which are used to collect dataflowing from a given manufacturing system. A “route structure” isdescribed more fully below in conjunction with the figures that follow.Also as used in this description of embodiments, the term “data route”or “route” is used interchangeably to refer to a multidimensionalmanufacturing route.

At 106, data collection proceeds from the various manufacturing routesthat have been configured at 104. Data collection can include datacollected from any factory, at any location, for any manufacturing routeassociated with the manufacturing system 100 for a given product orproducts.

At 108 reporting is provided on the manufacturing route structurecontained within the multidimensional manufacturing route database of102. Reporting provides insight which enables a user to understand avariety of aspects of a manufacturing system, such as for exampleproduct yield from the manufacturing process at both the globalmanufacturing system level and from within a given manufacturing route.Examples of reporting will be discussed more fully below in conjunctionwith the figures that follow. Reporting enables an understanding of thevariables that effect product yield. However, reporting is not limitedto understanding product yield. In various embodiments, reporting isused to understand product quality by understanding how close a productis to specification limits or control limits. In various embodiments,reporting is applied to the post production life of the product and isused to measure customer satisfaction. In yet other embodiments, astructure of manufacturing routes encompasses the full lifecycle of aproduct (cradle-to-grave) thereby collecting data that is producedduring the life of the product and feeding that data back into themanufacturing system into to make changes that can extend product life.

The collected data is mapped directly to a multidimensional datawarehouse schema, instead of an interim schema which is common practicein the IT industry. The lack of an interim schema speeds up the datacollection and reduces complexity. In the description of embodimentspresented herein a single schema is used to both collect the data and toreport the data. The single schema used herein is based on the constructof the multidimensional manufacturing route. Data routes can bere-defined once the data collection has started by aliasing the routeview from the data schema. Thus, a schema bus architecture is applied toproduct manufacturing at the manufacturing route level to create amultidimensional manufacturing route database. This architecture permitsa single database to be deployed and used for any product manufacturing.The single database resulting from the schema described hereineliminates the need for intermediate transformations of the data.Intermediate data transformations introduce noise and are undesirable.

In one or more embodiments, a variables controller(s) creates one ormore reports which illustrate how a variable is proceeding as a functionof time. For example, whether the variable is going in or out of processlimits is illustrated in the reports. In other examples, a variablescontroller is used to assess whether a variable is approaching a processlimit and to what degree the variable has traveled within the acceptablerange specified by the process limit. Corrective action can be takenbased on the output from the variables controller to make changes to themanufacturing system before waste occurs or before a threshold iscrossed. Thereby increasing value within the manufacturing system. Yieldincreases by eliminating or minimizing waste through the manufacture ofparts that are out of specification.

FIG. 1 also illustrates some of the user interfaces which are configuredwith the cloud database 102. The interface is configured using a webbased route designer and an Owner/Subscriber model for datacollaboration. The data collection interface allows data to be collectedfrom any factory at any location, with unlimited clients, can use a Webapplication programming interface (api) protocol (such as Dropbox™ uses)and can use a Windows data library. The reporting mechanisms allow theuse of “Business Intelligence Ready” data sources and can use Excel,Tableau or other relational data mining tools. The Open Data Protocol(Odata) protocol can also be used, in one or more embodiments. The ODataProtocol is an open protocol to allow the creation and consumption ofqueryable and interoperable RESTful APIs in a simple and standard way.Security is implemented at the Manufacturing Route and User level, sodata access for every Manufacturing Route can be controlled for any userindependently. Embodiments of the invention can have their own datalanguage that is invoked through the abovementioned Odata calls. Thequery parts implemented in the calling part of the method are embeddeddeep in the query procedures allowing specific, targeted data accesswith the database 102. The importance of this lies in the fact that withlarge databases too much data can overwhelm the analysis and tools beingused to retrieve the data.

FIG. 2 illustrates, at 200, the breadth of the manufacturing datacollection system, according to embodiments of the invention. Withrespect to FIG. 2, the breadth of the data collection system includes:any data, any factory, and any location, all of which are shown byillustration according to embodiments of the invention. 102 representsthe cloud-based database described above in conjunction with FIG. 1,which is also referred to interchangeably herein as a multidimensionalmanufacturing route database. 206 is a mobile data collection devicethat is web enabled, such as for example a smart phone, a tablet, a webenabled barcode reader, etc. Device 206 can both generate data andretrieve data from data collection cloud server 102. Also shown on FIG.2 is a representative number of local data clients 204 wherein there isone client for each instance of each manufacturing process of eachmultidimensional manufacturing route that transmits product data to thedatabase 102. Also shown is reports and analytics terminal 208 forrequesting quality data and retrieving the quality data results from thedatabase 102. Note that there can be any number of clients 204 acrossthe product lifecycle. The product lifecycle can include manufacturingresults, rework results and returned product results. The datacollection includes capturing the grain of the machine performing theprocess within a manufacturing route. Therefore, the client is the grainof the manufacturing data route. Wherein “grain” indicates the lowestpiece of information in a hierarchy for the manufacturing systemillustrated in the embodiments discussed herein.

In various embodiments, there can be a number of clients performing thesame process. By creating a structure of manufacturing routes wherein asingle client resides in one manufacturing route it is possible toisolate problems occurring within the manufacturing system to themachine (client) level. As used in this description of embodiments,machine and client are used interchangeably.

FIG. 3 illustrates, at 300, a multidimensional manufacturing route,according to embodiments of the invention. With reference to FIG. 3, amanufacturing route is illustrated at 302. The manufacturing route 302includes a client machine 304 and a process 306 which is associated withthe client machine 304. A number of manufacturing route controls 308 areindicated by control 309 through control 310. Manufacturing routecontrols are used within a user interface such as an application programrunning on a manufacturing route data processing system to permit a userto manipulate manufacturing routes. As described above, a mobile devicecan be configured with the manufacturing system to permit display ofmanufacturing routes and control of the manufacturing routes within auser interface as described more fully in conjunction with the figuresbelow.

312 depicts an interactive multidimensional manufacturing route for useby a user to monitor the manufacturing process and to improve the valueof the manufacturing process.

A database, such as 102 described above, as well as those discussed inthe figures that follow, store manufacturing data by organizing the datain multidimensional manufacturing routes. Organized by the structuretaught herein, a database becomes a multidimensional database. Invarious embodiments, the multidimensional database consists ofindividual tables which are referenced by “key” fields. Where the “key”is used to identify a manufacturing route. The tables contain both factsand dimensions or sub-dimensions. A sub-dimension is also referredherein as a secondary dimension.

As used in this description of embodiments, “facts” are a part of themultidimensional database. Facts are contained within a database tableand can be numeric measurements (values) that are the result ofcollecting data relating to one or more dimensions of a manufacturingroute.

As used in this description of embodiments, “dimensions” are a part ofthe multidimensional database and are represented by an entry and or aportion of a database table. Dimensions can be hierarchical in natureand the “grain” of the dimension is the highest level of precision forwhich data is being collected for.

As used in this description of embodiments, a “manufacturing route” mapsa machine to the database and contains at least one dimensional keyallowing the data collected by the machine to be entered into eachdimension and fact table. A manufacturing route represents a machineconstruct but also includes a schema definition of the associatedprocess and related product and business. At a minimum a manufacturingroute contains as dimensions a machine and the process associated withthe machine. However, many other attributes (or additional dimensions)of the manufacturing route dimension are possible, all of which relateto the machine through which the data is driven. Such as for example,the machine's physical location, which process the machine is collectingdata for, and for which product name and for which business the data isrelated to. The foregoing is not an exclusive list and is not meant tolimit embodiments of the invention. A multidimensional manufacturingroute can have a general number of dimensions according to variousembodiments of the invention. A further discussion of the manufacturingroute and the dimensions that pertain thereto is found below with thefigures that follow including FIG. 13 as well as others.

As part of the structure of the multidimensional database, in someembodiments, a multidimensional database is configured with secondarydimensions. In such architecture, a primary dimension has a “key” fieldthat is included in each fact table. A secondary dimension is adimension which does not appear in every table that contains the “key”field. Therefore, the secondary dimensions will show-up in some facttables that contain a given key field and not in other fact tables thatcontain the given key field. In one or more embodiments, an example of aprimary dimension is time, and examples of a secondary dimension is aproduct, where the product secondary dimension is included at least inthe product fact table but not in every fact table in the databaseassociated with the given key field. The product secondary dimension canhave attributes such as for example: serial number, work order, partnumber, parent serial number, status, etc.

FIG. 4 illustrates, generally at 400, a multidimensional manufacturingroute structure, according to embodiments of the invention. Withreference to FIG. 4, a multidimensional; route structure includes aplurality of multidimensional manufacturing routes. A firstmultidimensional manufacturing route is illustrated at 402. Themultidimensional route structure 402 includes a first dimension 404 andup to a general number “M” of dimensions indicated by 406. A generalnumber of multidimensional manufacturing routes “N” is illustrated at412. The multidimensional route structure 412 includes a first dimension414 and up to a general number of dimensions “A” indicated by 416.Optionally, a number of route controls 420 are provided for each of themultidimensional manufacturing routes within the multidimensional routestructure illustrated in 400.

A multidimensional manufacturing route structure is a group of routeswhich are logically related to a given product manufacture. This groupof multidimensional manufacturing routes is typically presented to acustomer (user) as an array of multidimensional manufacturing routesarranged in a table that pertain to the manufacture of a given product.“Time,” elapses as the manufacturing proceeds. The order that theprocesses occur in the manufacture of a product (and therefore theevolution of time) is implied by the arrangement of the multidimensionalmanufacturing routes in the multidimensional manufacturing routestructure with increasing time implied by increasing route row index.

As used in this description of embodiments, “data” consists of thedimensions and facts that are collected during the manufacture of aproduct. These can include variables which are numeric, attributes whichare non-numeric, and symptoms which indicate progression towardsfailure.

FIG. 5 illustrates, generally at 500, using multidimensionalmanufacturing route data to improve value during manufacturing,according to embodiments of the invention. With reference to FIG. 5, asystem process begins at a block 502. At a block 504 multidimensionalmanufacturing route data is received by a database such as thosedescribed herein. At a block 506 the manufacturing system stores thedata received at the block 504 into the dimensional manufacturingdatabase. At the block 508 data is retrieved from the database and oneor more reports are generated. The reports provide insight into theevolution of the product through the manufacturing system. Symptoms aredetected when one or more variables, which are being monitored within amanufacturing route, start to trend in a direction which will exceedprocess limits. Based on symptoms, corrective action is taken within themanufacturing system to prevent product waste. Preventing product wasteincreases the efficiency of the manufacturing system and increases thevalue of the manufacturing system.

FIG. 6 illustrates, generally at 600, using multidimensionalmanufacturing route data to improve efficiency during manufacturing,according to embodiments of the invention. With reference to FIG. 6, amanufacturing system analysis begins at a block 602. At a block 604 amanufacturing route is configured by a user using a user interface andanalysis tools as described herein both in the figures above and belowin conjunction with the figures that follow such as FIG. 16. Thisprocess of configuring manufacturing routes in block 604 can be repeatedas often as is needed to configure a structure of manufacturing routesfor the manufacturing system. At a block 606 data is collected on themanufacturing route(s) configured in the block 604. At a block 608,variables controllers are used to analyze data for symptoms. At block610 the manufacturing route is adjusted in light of the symptomdiscovered in the block 608. At block 612 the efficiency of themanufacturing route adjusted in the block 610 is improved. Themanufacturing system analysis ends at a block 614.

FIG. 7 illustrates, generally at 700, capturing data across manyprocesses within the manufacturing system, according to embodiments ofthe invention. FIG. 7 illustrates an example of the system's ability tocapture data during an entire manufacturing process. A dimensionalmanufacturing database 702, described above, is configured to acceptdata from a variety of manufacturing processes 704 that occur during aproduct lifecycle. In one or more embodiments, a manufacturing process706 may start with the process dimensions that include the name of theprocess and the process parameters that need to be captured. Followingthis construct at 708, the time the process starts is noted and theparticular product is given a serialization number. In this example, thegrain of the time variable is the precision which time is collected at.In one or more embodiments, a non-limiting example of the grain of timeis 0.001 seconds. The grain of the product is the serial number.

At 710, the next step again includes as dimensions the time, again theparticular product or process and now also includes the component partsused in the assembly. Attributes of the components are captured such aswhen they were made. Also referred to as lot code and date code. Thisallows for traceability of a component in an assembly. For example, ifit is determined that a failure occurred with a component it is possiblethrough reports on the collected data to determine which units of theassembly are defective. Corrective action can then be taken such ascomponent recalled, replacement, adjustment, etc. In this way, the valueof the manufacturing process is improved by minimizing waste throughdefective component and assemblies.

At 712, the fourth step, in the case of an example using a printedcircuit board, the process is “reflow,” with dimensions which includetime, the reflow parameters used, and any variables that may exist. Herevariables are for example in some embodiments, how hot was the oven(temperature) and what temperature was the part at and for how long?Collecting data such as this enables decisions to be made that can becorrective action to fix problems that arise in a given process.

At 714, the fifth step, following the example of printed circuit boardmanufacture, as is typical in printed circuit assembly, is the processof the wash step. Here again dimensions can include time, the product orprocess is delineated, and any variables are logged. All thisinformation collected from the client machines at any locationthroughout the global landscape is collected and is securely logged intothe cloud database 702.

Additionally, the manufacturing lifecycle can be tied together with thelife cycle in the field to provide a full feedback cycle which drivesmanufacturing changes based data collected during the service life ofthe product. This is described more fully below in conjunction with FIG.11.

FIG. 8 illustrates, generally at 800, data collection during productlife cycle, thereby enhancing the value of the product, according toembodiments of the invention. FIG. 8 illustrates how data collectedduring the life cycle of a product enhances a product's value. At ablock 802 product yield improvement increases product value. Productyield improvement is transparent to the user of the data. The datacollection can occur in real time or the process related data can beviewed at a later date.

At a block 804 the product or process data can be shared with the supplychain partners. Partners can be machines (clients) located anywhere inthe world that participate in the manufacturing system according toembodiments of the invention described herein. For example, a partnercan be a client in a multidimensional manufacturing route thatcontributes to a structure of routes in the manufacturing system. Somenon-limiting examples are for instance a source of a physical ingredientthat is produced with a number of client machines in one geographiclocation. In a separate geographic location and one or more clientmachines contribute to another aspect of the manufacture of the product.Data is collected on this group of one or more client machines in theseparate geographic location. Each client machine is configured as aseparate manufacturing route and data is collected on the manufacturingroutes within the description of embodiments taught herein. In thismanner, collaboration between clients is accomplished with the databeing collected and stored in a common dimensional manufacturingdatabase organized as a structure of multidimensional manufacturingroutes.

At a block 806 product reliability increases a product's value. Variableanalysis and Statistical Process Control (SPC) parameters can bemonitored for compliance to pre-established goals. Symptom and causeanalysis can be performed to correct any abnormalities. Symptoms arecollected and are displayed via reports. A cause can be added in lightof the symptoms collected. The product can be followed throughout itsusable life to capture its reliability parameters. During the life ofthe product, data can be collected from the product while used in thefield and sent back to the dimensional manufacturing database. This datacan be used to adjust the manufacturing system to extend the useful lifeof the product in the field by changing the way the manufacturingproceeds. In one non-limiting example, given merely for illustration, inone or more embodiments, when a bearing failure rate exceeds an expectedvalue this failure data can be used to select a bearing with a greaterlifespan so that the product's useful lifetime is extended.

In some applications, embodiments of the invention are used exclusivelyto collect data from the product in the field. This data can be used toadjust the performance of the product in the field. All of which driveproduct value and increase the efficiency of a manufacturing system.

At a block 808 customer satisfaction drives product value. Customersatisfaction is improved and fewer warranty claims need to be processedas the product reliability improves due to closer monitoring of themanufacturing process. Field actions are minimized and tracking fieldactions is improved.

At a block 810 better regulatory compliance increases product value.Regulatory compliance and reporting mechanisms are easier to track andrespond to. Most failures in electronics originate at the supplier, andbetter monitoring and closed-loop symptom/cause understanding can catchthe failure mechanism before it's shipped to a customer. Test data iseasily captured and archived by retaining that data in the cloud.Companies that provide cloud data storing have strong backup protocolsand advertise 100% reliability.

Applications of embodiments of the invention can be used to monitor thequality of medical devices which supports a company's ability to conformto applicable regulations. For example, data collection form the supplychains can be used to ensure that what is delivered is actually what wasordered. By implementing the data collection in a multidimensionalmanufacturing route data structure the resulting data can be analyzedand problems with individual suppliers can be identified.

FIG. 9A-9B illustrates, generally at 900, an example of data reporting,according to embodiments of the invention. With reference to FIG. 9A-98,an example of the yield chart of a Surface Mount Technology (SMT)electronic assembly board is illustrated. The column 950 shows theprocesses (and machines that perform the process) the boards undergo asthe boards progress through a manufacturing system. The other columns(952, 954, 956, 958, 960) show the number of boards tested and the testyields for particular work orders (on a weekly basis), the work order isthe particular batch being assembled and tested. Column 962 shows thetotal units tested through the aggregate period represented by column952 through 960. Column 964 shows the total yield associated with column962.

The yield chart is organized with rows, where each row with bold type(e.g. 902, 906, 910, 914, 918, 922, 926, 930, 934, 938 942, 946, and950) represent the processes performed. The rows directly beneath eachbold typed row indicate the client machines that performed the processindicated by the bold typed row directly above. For example, row 902indicates the process of Environmental Stress Screening (ESS). Rows 904indicate the machines that perform the ESS process. For example, ESS No2, Ess No 3, ESS No 5 are three machines that perform the ESS process.The yields for each of the machines indicated in 904 are shown undercolumn 954 for the second week of 2012. The yield on ESS No 2 is 98.8%,the yield on ESS No 3 is 100%, and the yield on ESS No 5 is 100%. Thus,the lower yield on ESS No 2 (98.8%) indicates that the overallmanufacturing system yield is being reduced by ESS No 2. Thus, furtherinvestigation of the ESS No 2 machine is warranted based on theinformation provided in the yield chart of FIG. 9A-9B.

Note that the information provided in the yield chart represents anotherview of the multidimensional manufacturing routes described previouslyin conjunction with the figures above. For example, a multidimensionalmanufacturing route has dimensions of machine (client) and the processperformed by the machine. Thus, each row of the ESS process, i.e., ESSNo 2, ESS No 3, and ESS No 5 represent three different multidimensionalmanufacturing routes.

Similarly bold row 906 indicates the process of Final-Test and the rowsindicated by 908 indicate that there are two machines, i.e.,Final_Test1, and Final_Test2 performing the process of final test. Thus,each row of the Final-Test process, i.e., Final_Test1, and Final_Test2represent two different multidimensional manufacturing routes.

Bold row 910 indicates the process of Hand Solder and the row 912directly below indicate the client HS Station 1 that performs theprocess of Hand Solder. The row HS Station 1 represents amultidimensional manufacturing route.

Similarly, for the rest of the rows in the yield chart of 900 the boldrow 914 indicates the process In Circuit Test (ICT) and the rowsdirectly beneath, i.e., 916 represent the machines that perform the ICTprocess. Bold row 918 indicates the process ORT and the row directlybeneath, i.e., 920 indicates the machine that performs the process ORT.Bold row 922 indicates the process Rework and the row directly beneath,i.e., 924 indicates the machine that performs the process Rework. Boldrow 926 indicates the process Serialization and the row directlybeneath, i.e., 928 indicates the machine that performs the processSerialization. Bold row 930 indicates the process Ship and the rowdirectly beneath, i.e., 932 indicates the client that performs theprocess Ship. Bold row 934 indicates the process SMT-Line1 and the rowdirectly beneath, i.e., 936 indicates the machine that performs theprocess SMT-Line1. Bold row 938 indicates the process SMT-Line1 and therow directly beneath, i.e., 940 indicates the machine that performs theprocess SMT-Line1. Bold row 942 indicates the process Wash and the rowdirectly beneath, i.e., 944 indicates the machine that performs theprocess Wash. Bold row 946 indicates the process Wash-Bottom and the rowdirectly beneath, i.e., 948 indicates the machine that performs theprocess Wash-Bottom. Bold row 950 indicates the process Wash-Top and therow directly beneath, i.e., 952 indicates the machine that performs theprocess Wash-Top.

FIG. 10 illustrates, generally at 1000, an example of data reportingassociated with the data shown in FIG. 9A-9B, according to embodimentsof the invention. With reference to FIG. 10, a pivotchart example of theyield chart of FIG. 9A-9B (ICT Process 914 and machines 916) isillustrated. The Y axis 1002 is the yield in percentages for the ICTProcess and the X axis shows which work order was tested at 1004,essentially illustrating yield achieved by the multidimensionalmanufacturing routes which perform the ICT Process. Note that “RouteProcess” has been selected as indicated at 1016.

The pivotchart of FIG. 10 is implemented as part of a user interfacewhich runs on a manufacturing data processing system as described abovein conjunction with some of the previous figures. e.g., FIG. 1. From thedata presented in FIG. 10, the yield obtained from machine ICT1 and ICT3in week 2 of 2012 (2012-W02) deviates from the yield obtained frommachine ICT2. This situation invites further exploration of why theyield is low on two manufacturing routes during a common time period.Resolution of the problem will enable the yield to be maintained infuture production runs thereby increasing yield and efficiency for themanufacturing system.

In light of the reduced yield illustrated in FIG. 9A-9B and FIG. 10 forthe ICT Process, a Variables Controller Tool and a Components ControllerTool can be used to drill down into the data collected by themultidimensional manufacturing route data collection and analysissystem. The Variables Controller Tool and Components Controller Toolsare implemented in various embodiments with user interfaces and are partof the manufacturing data processing system as described above inconjunction with some of the previous figures. e.g., FIG. 1. Forexample, analysis of the failed units examines how they were made andwhat was going on at the time of manufacture. The multidimensionalmanufacturing route data collection and analysis system captures testinformation collected in the manufacturing routes and in particular thedata collected during the time period when the yield was low permitsdiscovery of the problem that caused the low yield. In one non-limitinghypothetical example given merely for illustration, low yield might betraced to a certain resistor being out of specification. Then use of theComponents Controller permits discovery of where the resistors came fromthat were used during week 2 of 2012. For example, which lot code didthe resistors come out of? Thus, rectification of the problem could betraced to a particular sub-dimension in the manufacturing route of912/914 (FIG. 9A-9B) and 1006/1012 (FIG. 10). The sub-dimensioncontaining data on the source of the resistors. Alternatively, dependingon how the manufacturing routes are constructed, the source of theresistors could be configured as client machines having their ownmanufacturing routes. In either scenario, if the problem is residentwith the particular resistors, then rectification of the problem occurswhen that source of parts is adjusted in the manufacturing system.

FIG. 11 illustrates, generally at 1100, an example of variablesaggregation, according to embodiments of the invention. With referenceto FIG. 11, data is collected for a variable and is compared againstupper and lower control limits and against upper and lower specificationlimits.

A variable C175 shown in column 1102 represents a capacitor. The unitscorresponding with measurement of the variable are shown at 1004 with an“F” representing a unit of capacitance, i.e., “farads.” The datacollected from capacitor C175 is tabulated at 1110. A lower controllimit and an upper control limit are given by 1108 and 1112respectively. Likewise a lower specification limit and an upperspecification limit are given by 1106 and 1114 respectively. Column 1116indicates variable status with a “1” indicating valid status and a “0”indicating invalid status. Column 1118 is the failure indicator for thelower speciation limit, column 1124 is the failure indicator for theupper specification limit, column 1120 is the failure indicator for thelower control limit, column 1122 is the failure indicator for the uppercontrol limit.

In operation, measurements are made on capacitor C175 indicated by thevalues in the rows of column 1110. The value in 1110 is compared againstthe upper and lower control limits and the upper and lower specificationlimits. When a measured value exceeds a control limit or a specificationlimit a “1” is recorded in the appropriate column 1116 through 1124 toindicate the failure. In the example of FIG. 11, the “1” in column 1122indicates that the value for capacitor C175 (2.33109E-06) exceeded theupper control limit of (2.29658E-06). Events such as described, resultin a report being sent to the customer and then an action is taken tochange the manufacturing system therefore increasing yield, value and orefficiency of the manufacturing system for a product.

The variables controller described in FIG. 11 can be applied to manydifferent variables within a route structure of a manufacturing systemto improve the yield of one or more products within a givenmanufacturing system.

FIGS. 12A-12A1 illustrate, generally at 1200, creating manufacturingdata routes, according to embodiments of the invention. With referenceto FIGS. 12A-12A1, the mapping of the machine to the process, product,and business is illustrated to create data routes. The network of dataroutes is selected with the tool 1208. The data routes corresponding tothe selected network from 1208 are represented by the rows 1202. Thedimensions of the data routes 1202 are represented by the columns 1204.

1206 represents controls for each of the routes of 1202. In onenon-limiting example used only for illustration, within the routecontrols of 1206 are a number of route controls. In other embodiments,other controls are provided. In the example of 1206, “Verified”indicates whether a client machine has sent data to the route. “SyncStatus” is a control which indicates whether data should be collected(synchronized with the route in the database) on an on-going basis.“Report Status” is a control which indicates whether the route should beincluded in reports. “Status” indicates whether the route should beenabled at all. “Edit” permits any of the dimensions 1204 of the routeto be edited. The route can be “Deleted” a new route can be “Inserted”or an existing route can be “Moved.” All of these route manipulationsfunctions can be accomplished with the controls 1206. Thus, a structureof data routes is illustrated in the user interface of 1200 for anetwork of a manufacturing system.

Blocks 1230 and 1220 on the left illustrate the expandability of themanufacturing system database and analysis tool. Block 1230 shows theAccount Holder. The block 1220 contains Route Summary Data for multipleproducts. “Route Summary Data” has two products shown, one at 1210 anAutomotive product with 16 different routes. A second product shown in1220 is a medical product 1214 with 18 routes.

FIG. 12B illustrates, generally at 1250, a structure of manufacturingdata routes, according to embodiments of the invention. With referenceto FIG. 12B, a user interface includes selector 1280 which permits theroutes associated with a given Account, Network, Business, and Productto be selected. At 1282 Route Data is selected for view directly below.

The routes are represented by the rows 1252, which are numbered 1through 8 in this example used for illustration only. There can be anynumber of routes 1252 in other embodiments. The dimensions of the routes1252 are indicated by the columns 1254. A dimension 1268 is the client.Another dimension 1260 is the process associated with the client. Otheroptional dimensions include Schema 1262, Manufacturer 1264, and Location1266. In other embodiments, additional dimensions and sub-dimensions canbe configured with a route. Those dimensions shown in FIG. 12B areprovided merely for illustration and do not limit embodiments of theinvention. Controls 1270 are provided to act on the routes 1252 andprovide functionality as discussed above in conjunction with FIGS.12A-12A1.

The collection of routes provided in FIG. 12B is referred to herein as aroute structure as previously described. In some embodiments, theevolution of time is captured by the order of the routes such thatincreasing time is represented by increasing route number 1 through 8.Meaning that route 1 occurs first in time then route 2, etc. Note thatthe seventh route collects data during the product's life in the fieldand the last route, number 8, is a refurbishment process. Thus, in someembodiments, a complete product lifecycle is constructed of which thatshown in FIG. 12B is but one example.

FIG. 13 illustrates, generally at 1300, a multidimensional manufacturingroute, according to embodiments of the invention. With reference to FIG.13, a manufacturing route is represented by 1304 and the definitions ofthe dimensions for the data that is collected is illustrated with boxes1308, 1310, 1312, 1314, 1316, and 1318. In box 1304, the manufacturingroute is identified with a unique route “key” indicated by “#Route_ID.”The manufacturing route can have dimensions of Client, Process,Manufacture, Location, and Schema (note that as described above only twodimensions need be associated with a given manufacturing route and thoseare Client and Process.

1306 illustrates the connectivity of dimensions and facts that can beassociated with a given manufacturing route 1304 in a multidimensionalmanufacturing route database. 1308 represents the “Product Dimension”and “Product Facts” and provides a definition for these which is alsoreflected in the Schema shown in Appendix A. 1308 is realized with oneor more tables in the multidimensional manufacturing route database. Thekeys of “#Route_ID,” “#Time_ID,” and “#Product_ID” are used in thetables for the Product Dimension 1308.

1310 represents the “Variable Dimension” and “Variable Facts” andprovides a definition for these which is also reflected in the Schemashown in Appendix A. 1310 is realized with one or more tables in themultidimensional manufacturing route database. The keys of “#Route_ID,”“#Time_ID,” “Product_ID,” and “#Variable_ID” are used in the tables forthe Variable Dimension 1310.

1312 represents the “Symptom Dimension” and “Symptom Facts” and providesa definition for these which is also reflected in the Schema shown inAppendix A. 1312 is realized with one or more tables in themultidimensional manufacturing route database. The keys of “#Route_ID,”“#Time_ID,” “#Product_ID,” and “#Symptom_ID” are used in the tables forthe Symptom Dimension 1312.

1314 represents the “Cause Dimension” and “Cause Facts” and provides adefinition for these which is also reflected in the Schema shown inAppendix A. 1314 is realized with one or more tables in themultidimensional manufacturing route database. The keys of “#Route_ID,”“#Time_ID,” “#Product_ID,” and “#Cause_ID” are used in the tables forthe Cause Dimension 1314.

1316 represents the “Component Dimension” and “Component Facts” andprovides a definition for these which is also reflected in the Schemashown in Appendix A. 1316 is realized with one or more tables in themultidimensional manufacturing route database. The keys of “#Route_ID,”“#Time_ID,” “#Product_ID,” and “#Component_ID” are used in the tablesfor the Component Dimension 1316.

1318 represents the “Attribute Dimension” and “Attribute Facts” andprovides a definition for these which is also reflected in the Schemashown in Appendix A. 1318 is realized with one or more tables in themultidimensional manufacturing route database. The keys of “#Route_ID,”“#Time_ID,” “#Product_ID,” and “#Variable_ID” are used in the tables forthe Attribute Dimension 1318.

Note that there can be a plurality of Products, Variables, Symptoms,Causes, Components, and Attributes within a given structure ofmanufacturing routes that is used to define a manufacturing system.

In operation, when data is collect from the manufacturing system it isseparated into fact tables according to the Schema presented in FIG. 13and as shown in Appendix A. Variables are used for numeric data andattributes are used for non-numeric data. Symptoms as described aboveare an indication of a defect. Component facts include a list of all ofthe components which are part of an assembly. Component facts caninclude lot code and date code that correspond to when the component wasmanufactured. These facts are important facts which are used forimproving the reliability of a product. These facts are collected andmined during data reporting to produce reports which are presented to auser. Transformer, as described below, is used in places throughout themanufacturing system to facilitate entry of data into the schema andultimately into the multidimensional manufacturing route database. Causefacts can be entered by a user or cause facts can be ascertainedautomatically through automated analysis of the symptoms.

In one or embodiments, a manufacturing route is configured as explainedabove with dimensions of client and process. As shown above in someexamples additional dimensions of Schema, Manufacturer, and Location areused as additional dimensions. In various embodiments, different factsare collected during data collection. A core group of facts for productimprovement include Product Facts, Variable Facts, Symptom Facts, andCause Facts. Collection of this core group of facts can be applied toanalyze the manufacturing system of any product manufacture therebyincreasing the value of the manufacturing system through eliminatingwaste, reducing failure, extending product life, etc.

FIG. 14 illustrates, generally at 1400, an organization of the datahierarchy in a manufacturing system employing a structure ofmultidimensional manufacturing routes, according to embodiments of theinvention. With reference to FIG. 14, organization of a data hierarchyis illustrated. The highest data hierarchy is that of the Account Holderat 1402. The Account Holder owns the data. An Account Holder might be anOriginal Equipment Manufacturer (OEM), a Contract Manufacturer, or anassembly or process Equipment Manufacturer. The second tier of datahierarchy 1404 is the network (containing the data) possibly consistingof a self-contained database and a self-contained data archive. Thethird tier of data hierarchy 1406 is at the client level. The clientlevel 1406 could be the machine, the process, the manufacturer, thelocation, the life cycle, the product type or the business providing theproduct or process.

One Account can have many networks and each network can have manymanufacturing routes. The multidimensional manufacturing routes 1406 canbe configured in various ways according to the stage of productdevelopment. For example, a structure of routes can be configured foruse during prototyping of a product. Another structure of routes can beconfigured for product validation. Yet another structure of routes canbe configured for product production. There is no limit to the number ofroutes that be configured into the hierarchy of 1400.

FIG. 15 illustrates, generally at 1500, methods of data collection and adata schema for a multidimensional manufacturing route structure,according to embodiments of the invention. With reference to FIG. 15,data can be collected for upload in a number of ways. An XML schema 1502can be used where the XML schema is a description of a type of XMLdocument, typically expressed in terms of constraints on the structureand content of documents of that type, above and beyond the basicsyntactical constraints imposed by XML itself (an example of which is1504 and 1506 printed out in Appendix A). Also a windows based dataTransformer 1502 may be used or a web service with the appropriate API1502. This allows the data to be accepted as data input as long as theformat is pre-negotiated. Once a format file is in place for the databeing sent, the data is transmitted using web Basic Authentication witha unique key and password. By this method any type of text data can betransmitted from any type of web client.

A listing of the XML schema (1504 and 1506) are included in Appendix A.The Windows based data Transformer 1502 includes a dynamic link librarythat facilitates inputting data into the multidimensional manufacturingroute database. Transformer permits the output from test machines usedin manufacturing routes throughout industry to be transformed using adynamic link library which facilitates the transformation of the testdata into the manufacturing route structure needed for input into themultidimensional manufacturing route database.

FIG. 16 illustrates, generally at 1600, a manufacturing data processingsystem in which embodiments of the invention may be used. With referenceto FIG. 16, a systems overview for the multidimensional manufacturingroute data collection and analysis system is illustrated.

A first section 1602 pertains to users of the system. A second section1620 illustrates the user interfaces that are used with the system. Athird section 1630 shows the models and controllers that are used tosetup the multidimensional manufacturing route structure and generatereports both of which are done with the schema discussed above. A fourthsection 1660 addresses the actual data storage.

The term “user” is used synonymously with the term “customer” in thisdescription of embodiments. Users indicated by 1604 and 1606 interactwith web forms 1622 to define the manufacturing routes. Web forms 1622create accounts, networks, route summary, routes, users, client user andsymptoms, and causes at 1632 utilizing specialized software modules.FIGS. 12A-12A1 and FIG. 12B above are realized through web forms 1622.The manufacturing route dimensions in the database 1664 are configuredby the path representing flow from 1622 to 1632 to 1644 to 1664.

Computer users 1608 use Transformer 1624 and WebApi 1626 to input datafrom the various manufacturing routes utilizing the data controller 1634and the quality network model 1644 to store dimensional data in thedatabase 1664.

Database 1662 is a management database which is replicated using 1642and 1640 to form one or more of databases 1664 for a given customer.

When data comes out of the database 1664 to provide a report from path1664 to 1644 to 1636 to 1628/1630 the data is presented back out throughthe manufacturing route, the manufacturing route dimensions becomes thedimensions of the report at 160 because the same schema is used to storethe data as is used to create a report form the data.

The system stores user database roles in the database configurationitself. The roles are set during the login process. The roles are setduring the login process, so that any user may participate in anynetwork, at any user level.

This type of data collection, secure and permanent storage, and easyretrieval for analysis is critical to track the many and geographicallydiffuse complex assemblies and processes that go into many of today'sproducts. With the advent of components and assemblies originating frommultiple sources and from multiple locations, it is beneficial to beable to collect data from these sources and deposit it to a centrallocation and retrieve it from that central location. Using cloudservers, such as those offered by companies such as Amazon, AT&T, Googleand others, allow any device connected to the Internet access toreliable data storage. This further allows any company in a supply chainthe ability to upload process parameters, reliability data,product/component yields, SPC alerts and any other quantifiable datapertaining to a process, product or component. Not only are products,processes and components tracked during the assembly of the finalproduct but also data relating to returns and warranty concerns istracked. Regulatory concerns are also present for many products. Forexample, many medical products have extensive quality control proceduresand tracking requirements. Companies with the ability to quickly look atall the manufacturing data of a product, no matter where fabricated,assembled or tested will have an edge in the competitive marketplace.

FIG. 17 illustrates, generally at 1700, another representation of themanufacturing data processing system in which embodiments of theinvention may be used. The block diagram is a high-level conceptualrepresentation and may be implemented in a variety of ways and byvarious architectures. With reference to FIG. 17, bus system 1702interconnects a Central Processing Unit (CPU) 1704, Read Only Memory(ROM) 1706, Random Access Memory (RAM) 1708, storage 1710, display 1720,audio 1722, keyboard 1724, pointer 1726, data acquisition unit (DAU)1728, and communications 1730. The bus system 1702 may be for example,one or more of such buses as a system bus, Peripheral ComponentInterconnect (PCI), Advanced Graphics Port (AGP), Small Computer SystemInterface (SCSI), Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers(IEEE) standard number 1394 (FireWire), Universal Serial Bus (USB), or adedicated bus designed for a custom application, etc. The CPU 1704 maybe a single, multiple, or even a distributed computing resource or adigital signal processing (DSP) chip. Storage 1710 may be Compact Disc(CD), Digital Versatile Disk (DVD), hard disks (HD), optical disks,tape, flash, memory sticks, video recorders, etc. The manufacturing dataprocessing system 1700 is used to receive data from a variety ofmanufacturing routes as described above. Note that depending upon theactual implementation of the manufacturing data processing system, themanufacturing data processing system may include some, all, more, or arearrangement of components in the block diagram. In some embodiments,aspects of the system 1700 are performed in software. While in someembodiments, aspects of the system 1700 are performed in dedicatedhardware such as a digital signal processing (DSP) chip 1740, or asystem on a chip (SOC) which can also be represented at 1740, etc. aswell as combinations of dedicated hardware and software as is known andappreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art.

Thus, in various embodiments, manufacturing data is received at 1729 or1732 for processing by the manufacturing data processing system 1700.Such data can be transmitted at 1732 via communications interface 1730for further processing in a remote location if 1700 is used to representa mobile device such as 206 in FIG. 2. Connection with a network, suchas an intranet or the Internet is obtained via 1732, as is recognized bythose of skill in the art, which enables the manufacturing dataprocessing system 1700 to communicate with other data processing devicesor systems in remote locations.

For example, embodiments of the invention can be implemented on acomputer system 1700 configured as a desktop computer or work station,on for example a WINDOWS' compatible computer running operating systemssuch as WINDOWS' XP Home or WINDOWS' XP Professional, WINDOWS 10 Home orWINDOWS 10 Professional, Linux, Unix, etc. as well as computers fromAPPLE COMPUTER, Inc. running operating systems such as OS X, etc. In yetother implementations, embodiments of the invention are configured to beimplemented by mobile devices such as a smart phone, a tablet computer,etc. connected to a database which can be located in the cloud asdescribed above. Alternatively, or in conjunction with such animplementation, embodiments of the invention can be configured on asingle computing device where the database is stored locally within amanufacturing system without connection to a remote database in thecloud.

In various embodiments, the components of systems as well as the systemsdescribed in the previous figures are implemented in an integratedcircuit device, which may include an integrated circuit packagecontaining the integrated circuit. In some embodiments, the componentsof systems as well as the systems are implemented in a single integratedcircuit die. In other embodiments, the components of systems as well asthe systems are implemented in more than one integrated circuit die ofan integrated circuit device which may include a multi-chip packagecontaining the integrated circuit.

For purposes of discussing and understanding the embodiments of theinvention, it is to be understood that various terms are used by thoseknowledgeable in the art to describe techniques and approaches.Furthermore, in the description, for purposes of explanation, numerousspecific details are set forth in order to provide a thoroughunderstanding of the present invention. It will be evident, however, toone of ordinary skill in the art that the present invention may bepracticed without these specific details. In some instances, well-knownstructures and devices are shown in block diagram form, rather than indetail, in order to avoid obscuring the present invention. Theseembodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those ofordinary skill in the art to practice the invention, and it is to beunderstood that other embodiments may be utilized and that logical,mechanical, electrical, and other changes may be made without departingfrom the scope of the present invention.

Some portions of the description may be presented in terms of algorithmsand symbolic representations of operations on, for example, data bitswithin a computer memory. These algorithmic descriptions andrepresentations are the means used by those of ordinary skill in thedata processing arts to most effectively convey the substance of theirwork to others of ordinary skill in the art. An algorithm is here, andgenerally, conceived to be a self-consistent sequence of acts leading toa desired result. The acts are those requiring physical manipulations ofphysical quantities. Usually, though not necessarily, these quantitiestake the form of electrical or magnetic signals capable of being stored,transferred, combined, compared, and otherwise manipulated. It hasproven convenient at times, principally for reasons of common usage, torefer to these signals as bits, values, elements, symbols, characters,terms, numbers, waveforms, data, time series or the like.

It should be borne in mind, however, that all of these and similar termsare to be associated with the appropriate physical quantities and aremerely convenient labels applied to these quantities. Unlessspecifically stated otherwise as apparent from the discussion, it isappreciated that throughout the description, discussions utilizing termssuch as “processing” or “computing” or “calculating” or “determining” or“displaying” or the like, can refer to the action and processes of acomputer system, or similar electronic computing device, thatmanipulates and transforms data represented as physical (electronic)quantities within the computer system's registers and memories intoother data similarly represented as physical quantities within thecomputer system memories or registers or other such information storage,transmission, or display devices.

An apparatus for performing the operations herein can implement thepresent invention. This apparatus may be specially constructed for therequired purposes, or it may comprise a general-purpose computer,selectively activated or reconfigured by a computer program stored inthe computer. Such a computer program may be stored in a computerreadable storage medium, such as, but not limited to, any type of diskincluding floppy disks, hard disks, optical disks, compact diskread-only memories (CD-ROMs), and magnetic-optical disks, read-onlymemories (ROMs), random access memories (RAMs), electricallyprogrammable read-only memories (EPROM)s, electrically erasableprogrammable read-only memories (EEPROMs), FLASH memories, magnetic oroptical cards, etc., or any type of media suitable for storingelectronic instructions either local to the computer or remote to thecomputer.

The algorithms and displays presented herein are not inherently relatedto any particular computer or other apparatus. Various general-purposesystems may be used with programs in accordance with the teachingsherein, or it may prove convenient to construct more specializedapparatus to perform the required method. For example, any of themethods according to the present invention can be implemented inhard-wired circuitry, by programming a general-purpose processor, or byany combination of hardware and software. One of ordinary skill in theart will immediately appreciate that the invention can be practiced withcomputer system configurations other than those described, includinghand-held devices, multiprocessor systems, microprocessor-based orprogrammable consumer electronics, digital signal processing (DSP)devices, network PCs, minicomputers, mainframe computers, and the like.The invention can also be practiced in distributed computingenvironments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices thatare linked through a communications network. In other examples,embodiments of the invention as described in the figures above can beimplemented using a system on a chip (SOC), a Bluetooth chip, a digitalsignal processing (DSP) chip, a codec with integrated circuits (ICs) orin other implementations of hardware and software.

The methods of the invention may be implemented using computer software.If written in a programming language conforming to a recognizedstandard, sequences of instructions designed to implement the methodscan be compiled for execution on a variety of hardware platforms and forinterface to a variety of operating systems. In addition, the presentinvention is not described with reference to any particular programminglanguage. It will be appreciated that a variety of programming languagesmay be used to implement the teachings of the invention as describedherein. Furthermore, it is common in the art to speak of software, inone form or another (e.g., program, procedure, application, driver, . .. ), as taking an action or causing a result. Such expressions aremerely a shorthand way of saying that execution of the software by acomputer causes the processor of the computer to perform an action orproduce a result.

It is to be understood that various terms and techniques are used bythose knowledgeable in the art to describe communications, protocols,applications, implementations, mechanisms, etc. One such technique isthe description of an implementation of a technique in terms of analgorithm or mathematical expression. That is, while the technique maybe, for example, implemented as executing code on a computer, theexpression of that technique may be more aptly and succinctly conveyedand communicated as a formula, algorithm, mathematical expression, flowdiagram or flow chart. Thus, one of ordinary skill in the art wouldrecognize a block denoting A+B=C as an additive function whoseimplementation in hardware and/or software would take two inputs (A andB) and produce a summation output (C). Thus, the use of formula,algorithm, or mathematical expression as descriptions is to beunderstood as having a physical embodiment in at least hardware and/orsoftware (such as a computer system in which the techniques of thepresent invention may be practiced as well as implemented as anembodiment).

Non-transitory machine-readable media is understood to include anymechanism for storing information in a form readable by a machine (e.g.,a computer). For example, a machine-readable medium, synonymouslyreferred to as a computer-readable medium, includes read only memory(ROM); random access memory (RAM); magnetic disk storage media, opticalstorage media; flash memory devices; except electrical, optical,acoustical or other forms of transmitting information via propagatedsignals (e.g., carrier waves, infrared signals, digital signals, etc.);etc.

As used in this description, “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” orsimilar phrases means that the feature(s) being described are includedin at least one embodiment of the invention. References to “oneembodiment” in this description do not necessarily refer to the sameembodiment; however, neither are such embodiments mutually exclusive.Nor does “one embodiment” imply that there is but a single embodiment ofthe invention. For example, a feature, structure, act, etc. described in“one embodiment” may also be included in other embodiments. Thus, theinvention may include a variety of combinations and/or integrations ofthe embodiments described herein.

While the invention has been described in terms of several embodiments,those of skill in the art will recognize that the invention is notlimited to the embodiments described, but can be practiced withmodification and alteration within the spirit and scope of the appendedclaims. The description is thus to be regarded as illustrative insteadof limiting.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method to improve efficiency in manufacturing aproduct for a manufacturer, comprising: creating a manufacturing routefor the product, the manufacturing route specifies at least twodimensions, where a first dimension of the at least two dimensions is atleast one client machine and a second dimension of the at least twodimensions is a process associated with the at least one client machine;collecting multidimensional manufacturing route data according to asingle multidimensional data warehouse schema for the manufacturingroute, wherein the multidimensional manufacturing route data includesdata from the at least one client machine and the data is associatedwith the process that occurs with the at least one client machine;identifying specific data from the multidimensional manufacturing routedata that indicates a symptom of a problem which can occur within themanufacturing route; and providing the symptom of the problem, whereinthe problem is at least one of the following; a tolerance of themanufacturing route is out of a first acceptable range, a yield of themanufacturing route is out of a second acceptable range, and customersatisfaction for the product is out of a third acceptable range and thespecific data is used to identify at least one dimension that is causingthe problem; receiving an input through a processor, the input isresponsive to eliminating a problem and the input is to be used tochange the manufacturing route in order to improve efficiency inmanufacturing of the product; and utilizing a components controller topresent data on an origin of parts used in manufacturing the productresponsive to the problem, the data is extracted from a multidimensionalmanufacturing route database.
 2. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: creating a report from the data, wherein the report iscreated using the single multidimensional data warehouse schema.
 3. Anon-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing program code forcausing a data processing system to perform steps comprising: creating amanufacturing route for a product, wherein the creating utilizes asingle multidimensional warehouse schema and the manufacturing routespecifies at least two dimensions, where a first dimension of the atleast two dimensions is at least one client and a second dimension ofthe at least two dimensions is a process associated with the at leastone client; storing multidimensional manufacturing route data accordingto the single multidimensional data warehouse schema, wherein themultidimensional manufacturing route data includes data from the atleast one client wherein the data is associated with the process thatoccurs with the at least one client; and identifying specific data fromthe multidimensional manufacturing route data that indicates a symptomof a problem which can occur within the manufacturing route, wherein theproblem is at least one of the following; a tolerance of themanufacturing route is out of a first acceptable range, a yield of themanufacturing route is out of a second acceptable range, and customersatisfaction for the product is out of a third acceptable range and thespecific data is used to identify at least one dimension that is causingthe problem; receiving an input through a processor, the input isresponsive to eliminating the problem and the input is to be used tochange the manufacturing route in order to improve efficiency inmanufacturing of the product; and utilizing a components controller topresent data on an origin of parts used in manufacturing the productresponsive to the problem, the data is extracted from a multidimensionalmanufacturing route database.
 4. The non-transitory computer-readablestorage medium of claim 3, wherein the single multidimensional datawarehouse schema is used to create a report from the multidimensionalmanufacturing route data.
 5. A non-transitory computer-readable storagemedium storing program code for causing a data processing system toperform steps comprising: receiving data from a client machine;associating the data with a manufacturing route key to formmultidimensional manufacturing route data wherein a singlemultidimensional data warehouse schema is used during the associating;storing the multidimensional manufacturing route data into amultidimensional manufacturing route database, wherein the manufacturingroute key identifies a manufacturing route from a plurality ofmanufacturing routes within the multidimensional manufacturing routedatabase; receiving an input through a processor, the input isresponsive to eliminating a problem and the input is to be used tochange the manufacturing route in order to improve efficiency inmanufacturing of a product; and controlling components, wherein acomponents controller is used during the controlling, the componentscontroller to present data on an origin of parts used in manufacturingthe product responsive to a query triggered by the problem, the data isextracted from the multidimensional manufacturing route database.
 6. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 5, wherein themultidimensional manufacturing route data is part of a data stream andthe data stream contains multidimensional manufacturing route data for aplurality of dimensions associated with the manufacturing route.
 7. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 5, wherein themanufacturing route has dimensions selected from the group consisting ofclient machine, client process, schema, location and manufacturer. 8.The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 5, whereinthe multidimensional manufacturing route data includes product facts andvariable facts.
 9. The non-transitory computer-readable storage mediumof claim 5, wherein the multidimensional manufacturing route dataincludes a symptom fact and a cause fact.
 10. The method of claim 1,further comprising: creating a first plurality of manufacturing routes,the first plurality of manufacturing routes describes manufacture of asecond product for the manufacturer; and creating a second plurality ofmanufacturing routes, the second plurality of manufacturing routesdescribes manufacture of a third product for a second manufacturer, dataoriginating from the first plurality and the second plurality are storedin the multidimensional manufacturing route database using the singlemultidimensional data warehouse schema.
 11. The method of claim 10,wherein the manufacturing route includes the at least one clientmachine, the process, the product, and manufacturer identification. 12.The method of claim 1, wherein the manufacturing route is a routestructure that provides cradle-to-grave data collection for the product.13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 3,further comprising: creating a first plurality of manufacturing routes,the first plurality of manufacturing routes describes manufacture of asecond product for the manufacturer; and creating a second plurality ofmanufacturing routes, the second plurality of manufacturing routesdescribes manufacture of a third product for a second manufacturer, dataoriginating from the first plurality and the second plurality is storedin the multidimensional manufacturing route database using the singlemultidimensional data warehouse schema.
 14. The non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the manufacturingroute includes the at least one client machine, the process, theproduct, and manufacturer identification.
 15. The non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium of claim 3, wherein the manufacturingroute is a route structure that provides cradle-to-grave data collectionfor the product.